Hi berries!
I’ve been crushing on [name_m]Leopold[/name_m] for a while lately, but I’ve been a little concerned about the references mentioned in Nameberry’s thoughts on the name. I am currently (very slowly lol) reading [name_m]Adam[/name_m] Hochschild’s [name_m]King[/name_m] Leopold’s [name_f]Ghost[/name_f] so I’m familiar with the king mentioned—and agree it is probably the worst connection the name has. Is he why [name_m]Leopold[/name_m] gets a lot less attention than [name_m]Leonardo[/name_m], [name_m]Leonidas[/name_m], [name_m]Leon[/name_m], etc.? Is [name_m]Leopold[/name_m] usable? My first thought is actually [name_f]Kate[/name_f] and [name_m]Leopold[/name_m], but I wouldn’t want to willfully ignore a connotation to a name that would bring a whole group of people pain. If you’re familiar with the association and/or are black, I would especially love to hear your thoughts—I have loved [name_m]Leopold[/name_m] for years but it never really realized it might be a strong enough association to make it off limits, so any thoughts would be welcome.
Thank you!
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So I love the overall sound of Leopold I’m sucker for Leo names I think he sounds soft, distinguished and gentlemanly however I do find this association just so horrific. The ties to colonialism and the sheer cruelty of it would result in me using a different Leo name. Even though I love Leopold when it came to real life I wouldn’t use the name.
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I’m [name_f]Irish[/name_f] and white and I’ve always been interested in history. [name_m]Leopold[/name_m] II of Belgium is my first, and basically only, association with this name. I personally wouldn’t use it because it’s such an hideous connection and it’s not a super common name (unlike something like [name_m]Joseph[/name_m], which has plenty of innocuous associations to outweigh [name_m]Stalin[/name_m] or Goebbels). I think [name_m]Leopold[/name_m] II is probably the reason why the name is rarely used in English-speaking countries.
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I only know who [name_m]Leopold[/name_m] II is because I remember a news story about Belgians knocking a statue of him down during the covid era protests. Never heard a word about him in my history classes all through school, and I feel like most Americans would say the same. In the US at least I think the name isn’t getting used because it’s a bit grandiose and dorky. Europeans and Africans will obviously have stronger associations to the monarch.
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I loved this read (not what happened in it, obviously, but you get what I mean).
I think [name_m]Leopold[/name_m] is probably less used because (at least in [name_f]America[/name_f]) the ld at the end is unusual. Most Americans probably do not know about the atrocities he committed, sadly. So I’d say it’s more of a style than a connotation issue.
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I think [name_m]Leopold[/name_m] is totally usable but I agree that the king is an awful namesake
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I don’t know this historical reference at all (off to educate myself straight after this) and my first thought is also [name_f]Kate[/name_f] and [name_m]Leopold[/name_m] 
followed by [name_m]Leopold[/name_m] [name_f]Bloom[/name_f] from [name_m]Ulysses[/name_m]. But I asked my husband who is sitting next to me if he had any associations with [name_m]Leopold[/name_m] and he did immediately mention [name_m]Leopold[/name_m] II. It seems like it might be a no-go 
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Thank you everyone for your thoughts! I agree with the American berries that the clunky factor probably is the largest reason [name_m]Leopold[/name_m] hasn’t really caught on here, and it is a little reassuring that he is still very loved in several European countries. Outside of just [name_m]Leo[/name_m], [name_m]Leopold[/name_m] has always been my favorite variant, but I think I’d like to wait until I finish the book and understand a little better everything he did. I know what I read isn’t going to be pretty but I know very little details so far. It sounds like it’s probably not as taboo as some names, but I’d like to understand all the ties before I use it. I can’t enjoy reading as fast as I used to, so it may be some time until I have the full picture, but it’s been good to hear international thoughts on the name. Thank you all! 
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Personally, I know a couple of Leopoldos. One is a man in his mid-forties, and the other is a gentleman over eighty. In Spain, it’s quite an old-fashioned, almost “for older people” kind of name.
I wasn’t familiar with the film [name_f]Kate[/name_f] & [name_m]Leopold[/name_m], and although I do know who [name_m]Leopold[/name_m] II was and the atrocities he committed, I have to say that isn’t the first association I make with the name. Rather, when I read or hear “Leopold”, I tend to think either that the parents are really into unusual names, or that it’s a family name passed down through generations.
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